Higher sepsis mortality in safety-net hospitals linked to fewer post-discharge care options

Higher sepsis mortality in safety-net hospitals linked to fewer post-discharge care options 
Contagion Live - Infectious Diseases Today; by Kenneth Bender, PharmD, MA; 6/9/24 
Purportedly higher sepsis mortality in safety-net hospitals reflects less a difference in acute care than opportunities to discharge to hospice. By extending the measure of sepsis-related mortality from in-hospital events to occurrences within 30 days after the diagnosis, the purported higher mortality rate of sepsis treated in safety-net hospitals decreased to parity with non-safety-net hospitals, in a retrospective national cohort study. The investigators note the particular challenges of safety-net hospitals, which care for a disproportionately high share of low-income and underinsured patients, include fewer resources and narrower operating margins, as well as patient populations with decreased access to preventative care and more complex disease presentations.